Do Movember Critics Suffer From Sour Grapes?

As Movember Canada winds down another incredibly successful year...

...(raising more than any other country with nearly $40 million CAD), hairy lips everywhere once again are
seeing the light of day, men’s faces have become recognizable (and less
creepy), and Mo-spouses everywhere can rejoice in no longer kissing a human Brillo pads.

Money raised will go to Prostate Cancer Canada, awareness
and education programs, a global action plan, and The Canadian Male Health
Network (CMHN).

With more fundraising initiatives than there were days
in November, Kitchener-Waterloo communicated loud and clear that we support Movember.

Interestingly,
one of the primary criticisms stems from what it’s doing right: creating an overwhelmingly successful fundraising campaign to benefit an important cause. Does Movember eclipse all other fundraising attempts in
November?

Maybe.

But if it does, instead of criticizing Movember, shouldn’t
we be taking notes? Disparaging what’s
popular is easy. It’s also usually called sour grapes. Why not make better use of our time and look at what Movember's doing right:

Language.

Some Non Profits struggle to speak the language of people they’re serving
and soliciting support from, especially as they adopt new means of
communicating through social media.

Movember talks to guys like guys- on their level and on THEIR
TERMS. Most guys -surprise, surprise- don’t want to talk about cancer… or their
prostate… or their health, but they sure as hell love to brag about their manly
moustaches!

Image.

Depicting starving children doesn’t motivate everyone. Not everyone is
compelled to get involved with causes that make them feel hopeless and defeated
by the weight of serious issues.

Movember's website, social media, events, and materials are a careful balance of information, empowerment, hope, and tangible
progress.

“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do
not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those
because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then,
is not an act but a habit.” Aristotle

Movember is a month long campaign that successfully elicits compassion in some unlikely places. It doesn't shame, scare, or guilt to action- rather, it provides a symbol of pride, masculinity, and (best of all) a lot of humour. We have an important movement engaging a massive
demographic, that doesn’t try to make people feel helpless... and we’re
criticizing it? Rather than habituate idol criticism, let's ‘act rightly’ and implement meaningful change where it’s
needed.

Take note. Take action. Get involved.

KW Movember In Action:

My Movember Moments. Lisa MacDonald

Photo Courtesy of Launch Vault Media
http://launchvault.com/

This was my third year participating in Movember, and I
donated to 7 events (I’m all about spreading the wealth!). Two were
awareness/fundraisng events I hosted, four were events that I attended in
person/donated to/volunteered at, and one was an event I "attended"
online and contributed funds to.

Movember
Kids KW

Being on the KW Movember Committee for the last three years,
I wanted to get more people involved in the sign ups (that start at the
beginning of Movember), so
Those2Girls/Stuff To Do With Your Kids In Kitchener Waterloo and The Kitchener
Market presented Movember Kids KW. It was a fun-filled morning complete with
Moustache Themed cooking, crafts, entertainment and special guest AJ Bridel was
our Miss Movember for the day. We had over 100 families! And you could see smiles
for miles (or that may have been the colourful face-painted moustaches!).

#SignDepMO

The second event was a fundraiser I hosted at my workplace, The
Sign Depot. Our logo has a moustache- how could we not be part of Movember?!
Over $120 was raised in just two hours during the #SignDepMO networking event
and lots of connections were made over discussions about Movember!

It was a bit hectic to support another four events, but I
know how much time goes into organizing a public event and wanted to do my best
to support others in the community who’d planned Movember events. One of the
really cool events this year was the cyber-fundraiser. Because Movember has already has an extensive social
media campaign, being able to participate in an online day dedicated to
donating made for a fun experience!

Beyond cash donations it’s probably obvious I give a big
donation of my time as well. I think volunteering can be just as valuable as
fundraising as long as you are truly giving your time and not just showing up
to be part of the crowd.

Due Diligence. Karl Allen-Muncey

As part of my job, I am constantly doing research and due
diligence of one type or another, and participating in courses such as KW
Community Foundations Engage program has taught me to think carefully about commitment
and organizations, so I am always very wary of getting involved with new boards
and committees.

For a number of personal reasons, I wanted to get involved
with a cancer charity (namely men’s health - which there are literally hundreds
of) so I had to do my homework. And that I did. After a lot of reading and
research I chose Movember, and their work with Prostate Cancer Canada (and more
recently mental health).

I can personally say that this group of people are among the
most humble and frugal charitable organizations I have ever met. When I'm asked
"where does the money go?” (as is expected with a campaign that does so
well), and hear “They must all have huge salaries and a nice office like all
the other 'charities'..." I always laugh a little. I think of us all
crammed in their modest offices, with just a few staff, when we chat about
Movember each year.

Truthfully, you would be hard pressed to find a more
transparant organization that publishes their overheads and costs so openly.
They offer a great breakdown of initiatives, and research and global action
plans that are making significant headway in the field of cancer research and
men’s health awareness.

(If you are interested, check out
http://ca.movember.com/about/money/ for a full breakdown)

Being involved with Movember as a volunteer, I have found it
very rewarding: working with cancer survivors, and going into schools, chatting
to guys whose lives have been changed by feeling that they are no longer alone,
and can openly share mental or physical problems that they have.

Yes, Movember is a very fun campaign- lots of events and
fundraising requests- and it’s easy to knock or be skeptical of it, but from
firsthand experience, I have never regretted being part of a team of such down
to earth people, genuinely driven by changing the face of men’s health
internationally.

Being a MoSista. Jane Barkley

Criticizing things I’m unprepared to research OR change isn’t
my style, so this year I became a MoSista to understand what Movember is really all about.

I contacted Movember Canada directly with questions. I
joined our local Movember committee- attending meetings, communicating through
email, contributing to our social media campaign, and attending events.

I helped gather a team (that raised $1391), made a Movember video, discussed
issues with teammates, hosted an online fundraiser!

I hassled my husband until he made an appointment for a checkup with our
family doctor.

This isn’t a list of personal accomplishments, or a request
for a gold star. I threw myself into Movember as much as I could because I’ve lost family members to
cancer, and because I want my son to grow up without a doubt that his well-being is so important that silence is not an option, and that communicating on his terms is. More than anything, I've learned that this month campaign has a lot to teach us about how to get involved- lessons I can use to create positive change in other areas as well.
Thanks to the informed, supportive, and passionate Movember crew!